Heightened security alert in Davao City

Mayor Rodrigo Duterte said he couldn't question the advisories banning foreign travel in Mindanao, even as he ordered heightened security alert in the city.

“We can’t question the advisories made by other countries because those advisories did not come from our government, which we can easily validate,” he said in his Sunday television program.

“But we are tightening security and vigilance in the area, and pray that nothing bad happens because a threat to human life is always alarming,” he added.

He had earlier called the cancellation of the scheduled advertising congress here because of the travel ban on Mindanao issued by Canada and Australia “good riddance,” but over the weekend, he gathered police officers to raise the alert level in the area.

On Friday, the United States issued a similar travel advisory warning its citizens against travel in Mindanao, including Davao and Cagayan de Oro cities, even as it classified the situation in these areas as “generally more controlled.”